


ask and ye shall receive

by SandyRoses



Series: Under The Sea [5]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Comfort, Fluff, Humor, Joshua is only mentioned sorry, Just Seungcheol being a good dad, Just a tiny sprinkle if you tilt your head and squint, M/M, Magic, Male Friendship, Mind Reading, Other, Sort Of, Tldr Hansol is weird and Seungcheol asks, good soft boys, ish, jihoon is a good friend, the slightest of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:13:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23368249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SandyRoses/pseuds/SandyRoses
Summary: Seungcheol's always thought that Hansol was a bit strange, in an amusing kind of way. Always knowing and up in his head. Jihoon tells him to just be a big boy and ask why.
Relationships: Choi Seungcheol | S.Coups & Chwe Hansol | Vernon, Everyone & Everyone, Referenced Choi Seungcheol | S.Coups/Hong Jisoo | Joshua, implied cheolsoo - Relationship
Series: Under The Sea [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1476812
Comments: 10
Kudos: 105





	ask and ye shall receive

**Author's Note:**

> OK SO SOMEONE GAVE ME THIS IDEA AND I WAS LIKE HECC YEAH SUPERNATURAL AMERICAN LINE YES PLEASE SO THIS WAS BORN  
> Ok so I know Josh doesn't really show up in this at all but I wanted it to be more centered about Hansol and Seungcheol and their friendship, and I just wanted it to be more about non-romantic relationships in general because guys can be friends without it being romantic and yeah I just love Cheol being a dad to his kids so  
> I might upload something else with more Swimmy Boye Josh later if y'all want

“Hey, Hansol, do you know where-”

“Chan’s in the practice room with Minghao and Jeonghan.” It was a seemingly automatic response; Hansol hadn’t even looked up from his phone, one earbud in, eyes glued to the screen. Seungcheol blinked at him.

It happened again. By “it” Seungcheol meant the weird ability Hansol had to complete sentences and answer questions without even hearing the actual question. Seungcheol had indeed been wondering where Chan went, but his focus had been shifted to Hansol in a split second, and instead of brushing it off, he thought about it.

Hansol had always been a little odd, like Joshua. Not in a fishy way, but Hansol had always _known_ things, had always seen and heard things other people didn’t. He had that odd affinity for completing sentences and answering unasked questions, not to mention he always seemed to know what the others were thinking about. It was almost like he could read minds or something, but that would be absurd, right?

...Well, since Joshua was literally part fish, maybe it wasn’t so weird. Maybe Hansol was a normal person who could just make really, really good guesses with his words. Maybe Seungcheol was overthinking.

“...Coups? You ok?”

He jumped at the sound of Hansol’s voice, and he quickly gave the younger a smile, hoping to dispel the look of curious concern on his face. “Yeah, I’m fine, just...thinking about something. Make sure you ask Wonwoo-”

“To clean his room, yeah, I know. I’ll see if I can get Mingyu to help,” Hansol hummed, going back to his phone, and a subtle shiver made all of Seungcheol’s hair stand on end as he turned and hurried out of the room, heading towards the practice rooms. That was exactly what he’d been about to ask…

Seungcheol loved Hansol, he loved all his members, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t be weirded out by Hansol’s...weirdness. Maybe Seungcheol was just paranoid. Oh well.

* * *

It happened again. It didn’t happen all the time, not even every day, but it was just enough to catch Seungcheol’s attention. Hansol setting out snacks that Seungkwan liked where he knew the singer would find them later; Hansol answering half-asked questions; Hansol just...knowing things. It was strange, and Seungcheol was sure he wasn’t the only one who thought that way.

“It’s just kinda weird, y’know? Like, not in a bad way, not at all; I think it’s really cool, but it’s just...strange,” Seungcheol sighed, stretched out on the couch in Jihoon’s studio. Jihoon hummed tonelessly.

“Maybe you’re just looking too much into it? I think Joshua has put some weird fantasy ideas into your head. Maybe Hansol’s just really good at answering questions with minimal information, or maybe he just remembers that Seungkwan happens to like a certain type of candy,” Jihoon pointed out, and Seungcheol sighed; Jihoon was right. Maybe he really was thinking too hard about this. It wasn’t like Hansol was breathing fire or anything.

“...Or maybe America just has weird people,” Jihoon added after a second, and Seungcheol snorted. That did seem to be a theme with their American line…

“Aish, maybe,” he chuckled, lacing his hands together underneath his head. The ceiling was dark, the whole room doused in a blue-purple glow, enhanced by the strip of LED lights running around the corners of the rooms, and Seungcheol sighed quietly again.

“If you keep sighing, I’m kicking you out,” Jihoon warned, and Seungcheol snorted, though he knew Jihoon would definitely make good on his threat.

“Sorry, sorry, just...curious. What if Hansol isn’t totally human?”

“Then ask. Joshua never told because no one ever asked, right? Maybe Hansol subscribes to the same philosophy,” Jihoon said mildly, turning in his chair to give Seungcheol a raised eyebrow. “Y’know, ‘ask and ye shall receive’?” He turned back around in his chair, shrugging. “There are a lot of things you can get in this life if you just ask for it.”

He had a point. A very good point, Seungcheol reasoned. Why not just ask? If he was wrong, he and Hansol could just laugh it off and he could make a few jokes about Hansol’s weirdness. If he was right, well, then he had bragging rights for figuring it out.

“If you’re gonna ask, then just do it,” Jihoon hummed, shrugging again, more to himself than to Seungcheol. “Now, are you gonna help me with music or are you just gonna sit there slowly becoming part of my sofa?” Seungcheol snorted a laugh, sitting up abruptly, and he couldn’t resist lightly petting Jihoon’s hair before he left, murmuring a soft thank you. Jihoon made a quiet noise of acknowledgement, reaching over his shoulder to touch Seungcheol’s hand without looking away from his computers, and Seungcheol knew he meant well. Jihoon was like that, quiet in intentions, preferring to speak through actions than through words. It was reassuringly familiar, and as Seungcheol left he felt much better.

At least, he did until he went up to Hansol’s room, where he hesitated on knocking for a minute or two before finally mustering up the courage to do it, biting his lower lip between his teeth for a second. He was the leader; he could ask one of his members a simple question!

A muffled “yeah?” told him he could go inside, and he peeked open the door, giving Hansol a slightly shy grin. The younger rapper was perched on his big, fluffy bed, headphones around his neck, hair mussed up every which way, probably from him messing with it. He looked relaxed enough, fiddling with his phone, and Seungcheol wondered why he was so nervous.

“Can I ask you a weird question, Sol?” he decided to say, and Hansol gave him a slightly confused smile, jerking his head in an inviting manner.

“You just did, but go ahead,” he invited, and Seungcheol decided to just bite the bullet, even though it was definitely more than a little weird. He wondered how Hansol would react.

“Are you...like Joshua?” Seungcheol eventually asked, sort of hedging around the question, and Hansol blinked at him, brows slightly furrowed in one of his classically confused looks as his smile faded into something more...uncertain. It was an expression Seungcheol didn’t like.

“...There are a lot of answers to that and I’m not sure which one you’re looking for,” Hansol said slowly, and Seungcheol sighed, walking over and plopping himself down next to the younger rapper, putting a hand on his shoulder, opening his mouth, and hesitating on what to say.

“I mean like...do you have gills, like him. Crudely put, are you a fish boy too? Forgive me if this sounds offensive but sometimes you just...give off weird supernatural vibes and it kinda worries me,” he tried, and Hansol blinked at him again, tilting his head in a way that he didn’t do often, face contemplative, thoughtful. Hansol’s mind worked in ways none of them could begin to comprehend so Seungcheol just decided to wait.

But when Hansol just stood up, walked over to the door, and closed it, the audible click of the lock made Seungcheol even more worried. “...Sol?”

“Yeah?”

“What’re you doing?”

“Privacy? I dunno, I’ve never told anyone this before,” Hansol sighed, sounding a little uncertain as he fiddled with the lock, back still to Seungcheol. Despite his weird, knowing demeanor and mature disposition, he was still young, and Seungcheol knew he was probably making a hard decision.

But did that mean Seungcheol was right? Was Hansol like Joshua? Did they have two fish boys in their group?? Small world. 

“I uh...I hear things,” Hansol finally said, lifting and lowering his shoulders in a tiny shrug. Seungcheol stayed silent; it was better to let Hansol talk then try and coax the words out of him. “I just...pick stuff up. Bits and pieces of thoughts from other people, sometimes what they say out loud. Sometimes I hear stuff that hasn’t happened yet. I’ve gotten a lot better at controlling it but in the beginning it was all just loud, jumbled noises. It’s why I like wearing my headphones so much; it...blocks out the noise when it gets to be too much.” He rubbed his temples a little, sounding a bit strained, and Seungcheol hummed, bobbing his head slowly.

So Hansol could...read minds, to an extent. Honestly...that made sense. Hansol was a logical, thought-oriented person, always thoughtful and always reasonable. 

“...Come sit down,” he invited quietly, and Hansol did, perching on the edge of the bed. Seungcheol held a hand over his shoulder, and Hansol pushed into it, so Seungcheol rubbed his shoulder gently, waiting for Hansol to talk again.

“...If you’re wondering why I never told anyone, it’s just because it never came up. I didn’t think it was necessary to tell anyone,” Hansol mumbled, shrugging a bit and pulling his knees up to his chest. “I’ve gotten better at stopping it, so usually I can turn it on and off on command, so I didn’t...I just didn’t see a point in making it a big deal, especially with Josh being...part fish, but that’s a different story. I don’t know. I promise I’m not snooping around looking for personal secrets and stuff. Are you mad at me?”

“Sol, I could never be mad at you,” Seungcheol said earnestly, reaching up to ruffle Hansol’s hair. “Seriously. It’s your business, and you have every right to keep your secrets. It’s your choice, what you want to tell us and how much you want to tell us. I’m just happy you trust me enough to tell me.”

Hansol gave him a weird side-eye, expression unreadable, then he sat up straighter, a hint of a grin lingering around his mouth. “I can also do this.” Curious, Seungcheol watched as Hansol thumped his chest a couple times, coughing a bit before he took a deep, slow inhale and...let it out in a slow, thin stream of white-blue fire, a wave of heat washing over Seungcheol’s face.

“...That’s fuckin’ cool,” he said quietly, and Hansol laughed a bit, though it trailed off into him coughing out little puffs of ash.

“I haven’t done that in a while; always makes my tongue taste like soot,” Hansol huffed, grimacing, but he looked a lot less tense, and Seungcheol was glad for it. Stunned, yes, but glad.

“...So you can read minds? And see the future? And breathe fire?” he clarified, and Hansol hummed indecisively, wiggling his hand in a sort-of kind of gesture.

“Not really mind reading, more like...I just accidentally eavesdrop on someone’s thoughts. And the future thing doesn’t happen often, and even I’m still surprised by it every time. And to be clear, they aren’t- they aren’t really _visions_. I don’t see things. I just hear things, like parts of music, or half of a grocery list, or a joke. I know once I heard Jeonghan’s voice asking someone for help to style his hair and when I saw him ask Seokmin like half an hour later I almost freaked out. It was weird but it’s cool. And no, I don’t know how the fire thing works either. I’ve never really had an opportunity to do it that much.”

“...That’s so cool,” Seungcheol said honestly, eyes wide. “This might sound insensitive but can you show me?”

“I mean, I can’t physically show you but I can tell you what someone else is thinking, if you wanna know,” Hansol offered, and Seungcheol nodded excitedly, so Hansol closed his eyes, pulling his knees back up to his chest and setting his chin on his knees. He was silent for a while.

“Hoonie’s thinking about the insomnia Going Seventeen episodes, and he’s also humming Fallin’ Flower out loud. Someone down the street is talking to their friend; I don’t know who they are. Jun’s thinking in Chinese. Joshua’s watching The Office in his room and admiring John Krasinski. You have competition, dude,” Hansol chuckled, opening his eyes again. Seungcheol was about to make a joke when Hansol’s expression suddenly twisted into a comical look of disgust.

“Oh god, don’t go into Wonwoo’s room,” he whined, and Seungcheol winced sympathetically, patting his shoulder. “God, that’s- that’s disgusting, who even- ugh, I’m scarred! This is why I never listen to anyone’s thoughts anymore!” 

Seungcheol laughed; if Hansol could make jokes and be playfully disgusted, then things were going to be fine.

“I’m never talking to Wonwoo or Mingyu again,” Hansol muttered into his knees, and it was Seungcheol’s turn to grimace. Must have been rough, living with 12 other voices, some of which were louder than others. It made sense as to why Hansol always had something in his ears, though, which was nice to know.

“Is that why you get overwhelmed where there’s a lot of noise?” he asked tentatively, and Hansol nodded, fiddling with his necklace.

“Yeah; if there’s big crowds, then it gets harder to block everything out, but it’s getting easier. Concerts are...actually kind of nice. Sometimes I listen and it’s just a lot of ‘I love you’’s and stuff like that. Loud, but nice. It’s...bearable. I just don’t like being overwhelmed.”

“Makes sense,” Seungcheol said sympathetically, rubbing Hansol’s shoulder. “...This is gonna sound stupid and self-centered but I’m really glad you trust me enough to tell me this kind of stuff. If you ever need help with anything, I’m always listening. You can always lean on me.” It felt a little sneaky to sneak in a reference to one of their own songs, but Hansol smiled anyway, clearly understanding him.

“No, it’s not stupid. And I do trust you. We all do. You just have…” He gestured vaguely at Seungcheol’s entire body, mumbling something in English to himself for a second, eyes flicking around the room like they always did when he was searching for a translation, as though he would find it on the ceiling or on the walls.

“Have…?” Seungcheol prompted after a minute or so of extended silence in which Hansol just squinted at his closet, thinking silently.

“...Ah! Like, big golden retriever vibes,” Hansol finally said, waving a hand around triumphantly, a big grin stretching his lips into his classic heart-shaped smile. The sight always made Seungcheol fond, and he laughed as he ruffled Hansol’s hair, messing up the already unruly strands.

“I’m being honest! You’re like a big dog and it’s just...I dunno. In the least weird way, you’re like a dad and it’s just- it’s just nice having that reassurance,” Hansol continued, setting his chin on his knees, looking sort of nostalgic, brows sloped as though recalling a fond, distant memory. Seungcheol could only hum, not having expected the sudden introspective thought.

But with Hansol, it always paid to expect the unexpected, so he wrapped an arm around Hansol’s shoulder and brought him into a quick side hug. Hansol definitely wasn’t high on the skinship list, but he liked hugs too, and Seungcheol was always happy to give.

“I just like being there for you all,” he reminded, and Hansol nodded, letting the silence fall between them.

“...None of the others know, since you’re thinking about it, but I don't mind them asking,” Hansol said after a second, and Seungcheol gave a little start. So it looked like Hansol really could hear bits of his thoughts. Hansol gave him a small grin and Seungcheol chuckled, awe and amazement sitting comfortably in his chest, along with paternal fondness and protective affection.

“Man, America must be weird. I wonder if like, Mark from NCT is magical too,” he joked, and Hansol laughed, adjusting his headphones.

“I wanna make a song with him. He seems really chill.” Hansol bounced off of his bed and into his chair, spinning around once before facing Seungcheol. “We should have all the American-born artists come together and make a song or something. That would be fun, wouldn’t it.”

“Chaotic, certainly, but fun,” Seungcheol agreed, and Hansol opened his mouth before turning to look at the door, perked up like a puppy who had noticed a bird. Seungcheol followed his gaze and indeed, someone knocked not 10 seconds later.

“Hansol? You there?” Seungkwan’s voice called, and Hansol hummed loudly, jumping up to unlock the door before scurrying back to his seat. When Seungkwan poked his head in Seungcheol waved, and Seungkwan gave him a smile. “Hi, Seungcheol. I just wanted to chat with Hansol since Seokmin and Mingyu are out doing their own thing.”

“Since when did I become a third choice?” Hansol snorted; clearly some of Chan’s cheekiness had been rubbing off on him. 

“Since you forgot my sweater at that bar in downtown-”

“That was _one_ time, Kwan, and I bought you an identical one-”

“That old one had sentimental value though!”

“Kwan, they look _exactly the same_ -”

“Alright, alright, you two, keep your lovers’ quarrel down,” Seungcheol laughed, standing up. Seungkwan pouted as Hansol laughed, but as always, the singer’s expression softened as he bounced in to take Seungcheol’s place on the bed.

“I’ll be taking my leave now, but thanks for the chat, Hansol,” Seungcheol said gently, holding his hand out, and Hansol gave him a good old-fashioned bro handshake, which made Seungkwan snort, now stretched out luxuriously on Hansol’s sheets like some kind of fluffy cat. It wasn’t an uncommon sight, so Seungcheol didn’t question it, and he made sure to pat the top of Seungkwan’s head lightly too, smirking at the younger’s indignant expression.

“Go away, dad,” Seungkwan whined sarcastically, swatting at his hand, and Seungcheol placed a hand on his heart, feigning offence.

“Excuse you? I feed you and clothe you and offer my unconditional love and support and _this_ is how you repay me? This is a betrayal, truly. My own children, turned against me,” he sighed loudly, and Seungkwan and Hansol giggled at him. Seungcheol laughed too, opening the door and moving half out into the hallway, giving Hansol a small, proud smile before he closed the door, feeling rather satisfied indeed.

“You look happy.” He jumped rather violently and whirled around to see Mingyu standing there; for all his height and clumsy reputation, Mingyu could be remarkably quiet on his feet when he wanted to be.

“I am, I guess,” Seungcheol decided to say, shrugging, and Mingyu fell into step with him as they walked downstairs.

“Why?” he asked curiously, and Seungcheol shrugged again.

“Do I need a reason to be happy?” Mingyu fell silent at that, face thoughtful, and shrugged as well, brightening up again. Truly a puppy of a man, Seungcheol thought fondly, wrapping an arm around Mingyu’s shoulders despite the height difference. Mingyu sent him a small smile, one Seungcheol returned, and Mingyu sighed happily, a bounce in his step.

“I guess not.” Mingyu was nice like that, Seungcheol thought to himself, so easy and accepting. It was hard not to be positive around him.

“Y’know, have you ever noticed that Hansol’s kinda weird?” Mingyu said suddenly, and Seungcheol fought the urge to smile, humming for Mingyu to continue. “Y’know, like, he’s always so good at completing sentences, and guessing what people are thinking, stuff like that. Sometimes I wonder if he can read minds or something. He just has that kind of vibe, doesn’t he?”

“Well, who knows?” Seungcheol smiled down at his feet, an amused feeling of contentedness rising in his chest. “Maybe you should just ask and find out.”

* * *

“You were right. Asking really does get you answers,” Seungcheol said much later, having found his way back to Jihoon’s studio. Jeonghan was there too, and so was Jun, the two of them tangled up and humming to themselves, sharing a pair of earbuds as they watched something on Jun’s phone.

“I know,” Jihoon huffed, barely pausing in his inhaling of cheap take-out. “So were you right? Is Hansol some kind of weird, mind-reading alien? I’ve always thought Hansol was an alien. He certainly dresses weird enough to be one.”

“Go and ask him yourself,” Seungcheol snorted, playfully tossing his pillow at Jihoon’s legs. Jihoon kicked it away with a chuckle, giving him a good-natured glare, filled with faux annoyance; it was one of Jihoon’s regular expressions.

“Quit using my own advice on me. It feels weird,” he complained, and Seungcheol laughed, attracting Jun and Jeonghan’s attention.

“Something funny about Sollie? Is he an alien or something?” Jeonghan’s brief lapse in concentration was filled by Jun draping his legs over the older’s lap, and Jeonghan just sighed, patting Jun’s knees before returning his attention to Seungcheol, who gave Jihoon a shit-eating grin. Jihoon rolled his eyes, shaking his head, but there was an echo of a grin on his face, and Seungcheol knew he was amused, so he turned to Jeonghan, who had a slightly confused smile on his face, one eyebrow arched.

“Just go and ask.”

**Author's Note:**

> yEET  
> I promise I'll update the Princess series soon  
> And the hanahaki fic is in the works rn as I type


End file.
